Guitar scales the pentatonic scale is a favorite of many guitarists and its easy to see why. Most of the same qualities discussed can be applied to c major as well. Minor pentatonic scales are a focus of interest for many beginners, as these are. In this lesson you will be learning some ways to use the pentatonic scale in a solo. The root notes a in these examples are circled so that you can learn their locations. All of the root notes are e because this is the e minor pentatonic scale. The guitar neck diagram shows you the big picture for the e minor pentatonic scale. In this case d7alt that is eb melodic minor and the ebm is a perfect scale choice. Major pentatonic scales in open position closed mobile major pentatonic scales forms horizontal. If we played these five notes on the low e string, we would end up with the pattern shown below. If you are stuck in the pentatonic box then this is the way. It is a must know for any jazz guitar student who wants to improvise over major chords.
A quick online search about the minor pentatonic scale pdf will guide you. The major pentatonic scale guitar shapes and theory. In the example below, and in most of the pattern tabs, well use the familiar a minor boxes. As you will learn, these patterns can be transferred to all keys. Sep 15, 2018 the minor pentatonic scale is highly popular due to its versatility and playability. For example, the relative minor of c is a minor, and the notes which form c major pentatonic and a minor pentatonic are the same. To know how to play the major pentatonic we leave the three most common fingerings for this scale in the bass. Still, this scales importance cannot be underestimated, as it is used in so many genres of music, from rock and blues to country and bluegrass. Pentatonic scales are cleaner as far as diagrams so theyre a little easier to work with. Minor pentatonic scales 15 a minor pentatonic 15, bb minor pentatonic 16, b minor pentatonic 17, c minor pentatonic. Technically speaking, any scale with only 5 notes can be called pentatonic.
D minor pentatonic has the same notes as f major pentatonic and so it goes. Apr, 2018 the minor pentatonic scale is quite possibly the most used and, suffice it to say, overused scale on the guitar. Use the e minor pentatonic scale when playing 12 bar blues in. The natural minor is the aeolian mode of the relative major scale. Again, while you should hit all twelve keys when practicing patterns, the keys you will most likely encounter using the boxes are in no particular order. And of course the tonic minor chord gm6 is easily taken care of with a g m6 pentatonic scale. Everything in this book is presented in the key of a minor so that you can see how it all relates together and so that you can begin to string licks together into larger ideas. The minor pentatonic scale is one of the most commonly scales used in rock, blues, country and jazz music. This is the only pentatonic scale pattern that requires a position shift.
For simplicitys sake, you will only use one scale, a minor. The minor pentatonic scale of a key can be found and played in the same pattern 3 frets below the major scale. It is actually a major arpeggio with the 2nd and 6th added. The minor pentatonic penta five scale is a five note scale with no second or sixth degrees. The minor pentatonic scale is constructed from five notes of the natural minor scale. Here is the equation of the minor pentatonic, have a look at how it relates to the natural minor scale. Clicking here and on the image below will open a pdf file of the minor pentatonic scale chart that prints nicely. There are a million ways to express your emotions through the minor pentatonic and use it for your soloing. We are going to take as tonic the 4th string in the. Pentatonic scales pentatonic scales are directly derived from natural major and minor scales.
The aeolian mode natural minor is the 6th mode of the major scale. To play the g minor pentatonic scale in the third position, begin with your middle finger on the sixth string, eighth fret and play through the pattern as noted. The red dots indicate a root note and the black dots indicate a note in the scale. Listen to mccoy tyner and john coltrane to get an understanding of the types of sounds created through improvising with. Welcome to lesson 3 of the pentatonic scale, pentatonic blues licks. A minor pentatonic contains scale degrees 1, b3, 4, 5, and b7. When you reach the second string, youll need to shift your hand up one fret. The minor pentatonic scale consists of the same 5 notes of the major pentatonic. The minor pentatonic expanded scale 2written by david taub now that you are familiar with the minor pentatonic scale in the box position and in an expanded 1 scale, lets learn the minor pentatonic expanded 2 scale.
The line returning to the root still within the pentatonic scale, as shown. Pentatonic and blues scales are effectively equivalent. Master the minor pentatonic scale using the whole fretboard. The scale illustrated on the right is the most common basic box position. This guitar lesson provides some fretboard diagrams, charts and licks to expand your improvisation skills. This is the a minor pentatonic scale in 5th position, shown in tab and a vertically oriented diagram.
We are going to take as tonic the 4th string in the fifth fret, in the pitch note a. The minor pentatonic scale by paul tauterouff the minor pentatonic scale is one of the most commonly scales used in rock, blues, country and jazz music. Note that a minor pentatonic has identical notes with c major pentatonic but in different order. Combining minor and major pentatonic scales guitarhabits. The pentatonic scale chose 5 from these notes and created another scale, this is why it is called penta. Cs relative minor pentatonic scale, a minor pentatonic, begins on the 6 th scale degree of the major pentatonic scale shown above. In this lesson, were going to break down the minor pentatonic. Pentatonic scales are very common and are found all over the world.
Clicking here and on the image below will open a pdf file of the guitar major scale chart that prints nicely. The notes of the a minor pentatonic scale are a, c, d, e, and g. Minor pentatonic scales to introduce a novice guitar player to the world of rock music requires that he learn a series of scales, which we can call the tools of the trade. This scale will have its root note on the 5th or a string and you can start with your 3rd finger. For the most part, im going to deal with pentatonic scales, but you can do blues scales instead if you want. On an unaltered dominant 7th chord or 7sus4, you can use a minor pentatonic scale starting from the chords 2nd, 5th or 6th. There are three ways youll want to learn your major pentatonic scale forms. You can get more diagrams in the tuning of your choice by using my interactive web app here. The pentatonic scale is frequently used in lots of popular music styles.
Therefore, a pentatonic scale is a fivenote musical scale. Click here to gain instant access to pdf filled with pentatonic scales. One of the ways we use pentatonic scales is by exploring scale patterns. Pentatonic scale has notes that when played generate a pleasant melody, even if it is just the. This pdf contains the diagrams for all the major and minor pentatonic scales in all keys for guitar in. A minor pentatonicblues scale weeping willow guitar. Dismiss 4th and 7th notes from natural major scale, from any root. Here are the 5 standard 2 notes per string positions for the a minor pentatonic scale. It is similar to the natural minor scale, the alteration is that you need to omit the second and the sixth notes from the minor scale. Penta is 5, tonic is tones our soundsa scale with 5 tones or notes. When shifting to alto sax at the age of 15, and tenor at 17, the young dexter.
The major pentatonic scale is one of the most used of the pentatonic scales family. Comping with pentatonic scales now there is a ocean of online, magazine, and video lessons about how to comp with pentatonic scales. The key to understanding the minor pentatonic scale guitar. Guitar scales printable charts of the most commonly used scales.
Also, the pentatonic scale can be easily turned into the blues scale by adding the blues notes. The 14 most common and usable guitar scales printable and ready to use 1. Aug 07, 2015 the minor pentatonic is the most important scale in blues and rock music. The e minor pentatonic scale can be divided into patterns. R 11 5 b7 b3 b3 1f 5 r 11 11 b7 b3 3f r 11 5 5 b7 5f b3 r 5 7f 11 b7 b7 b3 9f r r 11 5 b7 b3 r 11 5 12f b7 b3 b3 5 r 11 11 b7 b3. This scale has its low root played with the first finger on the low e string.
A staple in blues music, this scale brings moodiness and tension that creates that familiar blues sound, particularly when played over majordominant chords. There are both pentatonic major and minor the minor is slightly more often used. The a minor pentatonic comes from the natural minor scale. Chitarra scale pentatoniche pdf learn the major and minor pentatonic scales, their patterns, when to use them, and why theyre the scale shortcut. Each of the five chapters focuses on 1 of the 5 patterns of the caged system. The scale is made up of five notes per octave, thats why it has the word penta, meaning 5 in greek. This is the home position of the pentatonic scale in c major or a minor. In these bass scales pdf we leave you the three most common fingering to play well this pentatonic minor scale. Major and minor pentatonic scales avoid significant harmonic dissonance by adverting this tritone. A minor pentatonic scale diagrams a minor pentatonic fretboard diagram. Many guitarists get stuck in a rut playing the minor pentatonic scale. The basics of the minor pentatonic scale for guitar soundfly. The only difference is which root notes you choose to target.
Before we get started, here are the 5 pentatonic boxes in the way i look at them. This pdf contains the diagrams for all the major and minor pentatonic scales in all keys for guitar in standard tuning. Both the pentatonic major scale and minor scale have the same patterns. For this chapter we will be considering minor pentatonic only. You can also download the chart as a pdf by entering your. Several typical pentatonic blues licks will be used as a starting point to develop your knowledge of the pentatonic scale. Its an awesome scale and sounds great, no doubt about it. Fingering of the major pentatonic scale for electric bass. Fingering to play the minor pentatonic scale on the electric bass. However the popular genres of western music are based around two. The intervals in minor pentatonic are root or 1, b3rd, 4th, 5th, and b7th.
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